Inevitably, Nintendo’s unveiling of Project Café – now the Wii U – threw up as many questions as it answered. In particular, we mused over the size and comfort of its unique controller, and whether its feature-burdened specifications would create a price barrier.

Yesterday, we went hands-on with eight proof-of-concept games – hands-on tech demos that seek to showcase the Wii U’s capabilities. Nintendo was at pains to state that none of the pseudo-games we played would be released. Each title demonstrated a different aspect of what’s possible with the controller.

The controller itself is light, thin enough, robust, and fits comfortably in the hands. The high position of the analogue sticks also means that thumbs sit in a very natural position.

The first demo, Battle Mii, is one of two games that highlight the system’s asymmetrical play. Using the Wii U controller and screen, one player controls a space ship. He or she is pitched against two players using classic Wiimotes and sharing the TV screen.

The second such demo was Chase Mii – essentially a digital version of school-yard tag. Again, one player uses the Wii U controller and plays as Mario. The Wii U screen shows an isometric view of a Nintendo-themed garden maze and a map showing the positions of Mario’s four pursuers. On the TV screen, four more players chase Mario.

The use of the Wii U controller screen eliminates the inherent problem of sharing a screen in a competitive game. While the player with the Wii U controller usually has the most engaging experience, both ably demonstrate the potential for experiences unique to the system.

Shield Pose is a decidedly casual spacial environment game. Set to a pop beat, the player must face the controller up, left or right to block arrows shot by pirates. On the Wii U’s controller screen, players can view the game world around them. Nothing remarkable.

In a similar vein, Measure Up is a party game in which players trade the Wii U controller and stylus to compete in several drawing challenges. For example, players see who can draw the most exact circle with a 5cm diameter, or who can get closest to penning a 75 degree angle.

New Super Mario Mii allows the player to replace the Nintendo mascot with his or her own Mii. Think New Super Mario for Wii, but with the character replaced by your account persona. If nothing else, it demonstrates Nintendo’s patently obvious intent to bring Mario to the platform as soon as possible.

Another Nintendo icon, Link, competently demonstrated the system’s high definition potential. The Zelda HD experience sees the hero entering a large hall and fighting a gigantic spider. On the Wii U controller, players are able to change the day-night cycle and angle the camera on the TV. Additionally, players could switch the screens. Watching the HD tech demo on the controller’s smaller resolution showed no significant deterioration in image quality.

The final item was the Japanese Garden tech demo, shown at Nintendo’s press conference. It features birds flying around a tranquil setting and through a day-night and seasonal cycle. Obviously what couldn’t be seen was the image on the controller. This provided a literal bird’s-eye view.

As Nintendo US CEO Reggie Fils-Aime stated, and as a long line of Nintendo representatives went to great lengths to reiterate, these demos are not representative of final products for the new system. Instead, they showcase both the Wii U’s improved graphical capabilities and the potentially innovative software that the system can host.

The Wii U will have strong third-party publishing support, but for core audiences already installed on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, it will have to be Nintendo’s proprietary licenses that drive adoption of the system. Let us hope that Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong and company are dolled up and ready to go on launch day.